NaNoWriMo, part 7
Nov. 14th, 2006 05:02 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bookish_dragonThey met Bjernu and Olgyu for dinner. "What happened to you?" Ameena asked. The half-elf was looking very angry. His nose was big and red, and he had a bag of ice sitting next to his hand. "Is it broken?"
"She happened." Bjernu pointed a finger at Olgyu. "Thankfully it is not broken, but it was close, according to your Sister Emmar. Oww!" He clutched the bag of ice to his nose. Marnak and Ameena looked at Olgyu.
The warrior shrugged. "He is being a baby. It is not broken and yet he keeps whining. He just does not like losing."
"You cheated! You hit me in the face! That is not what we agreed upon," Bjernu burst out, looking aggravated.
"First blood, dear." Olgyu looked smug.
"I am not your dear," Bjernu snapped. "And it was still not what we agreed upon."
"Silence, both of you!" Marnak ordered. "You have had all day to settle this. Now I want some quiet while I eat." Bjernu started sulking again. Olgyu started eating her meal. Ameena did so too.This was a change from the bantering that had gone on this morning. Finally the scout began to eat too, picking at his food and eating in small bites. He was breathing heavily through the ice bag on his nose. "What have you found out, Marnak?" he asked the cleric. "Anything interesting?"Marnak went on eating. "Well?"
"After dinner, Bjernu."
"You are snappish," Bjernu said.
"I want to eat after a long day of squinting at maps, and I find you and Olgyu fighting." Marnak rubbed his eyes with his left hand. "I want some peace right now."
"In here?" Bjenru looked around him, and gestured at the mess hall. It was noisier now than at breakfast.
"Yes, in here!" Marnak clanged down his fork. "Now let me eat!" The others looked surprised at his outburst, as did some of the monks sitting nearby. Ameena looked at her plate. Olgyu returned her attention to her meal when it was clear nothing else would happen. Bjernu sat stunned in his chair. Marnak had not often talked like this, let alone to him, his closest friend. The rest of the meal went on in silence. Ameena felt uneasy under all this. She wished Marnak had not asked to sit with them. After the meal was over, Marnak spoke again. "There are some bigger cities nearby. Not much else. There is Larghain to the north and Cramzia to the east. Sister Ameena has more about them. Sister Ameena, if you would tell us, please?"
Ameena looked up, surprised by the sudden change. "Yes? Oh, yes. Cramzia. It is a big city on a major trade route. They have a large market, more like a bazaar, where a lot of exotic products are sold. It is a week and a half's travel away from here." She hesitated. She did not want to talk about Larghain's bad reputation again, since she was not sure how the others would react.
"And Larghain?" Bjernu asked. He had noticed Ameena's uneasiness.
She swallowed. "It is not a good place to go to. It is to the northwest, at the border." She stopped again. She looked very miserable.Marnak said nothing.
"Why is not a good place to go to?" Olgyu asked. She had leaned back in her chair after dinner, folding her hands over her stomach. She looked questioningly at the monk, willing her to get on with it. She hated people who stalled when talking.
"Not everyone would be welcome there." Ameena glanced at Bjernu for a moment. He raised and eyebrow. "They do not like those of mixed parentage."
"Meaning?" Bjernu's voice got low.
"Half-elves, for one. There are living only elves and humans in the city and they believe in keeping the races pure." She looked at her plate pushing her cutlery around. "I am sorry."
"We should go there. I want to see that city for myself."
"Because they do not want me to." Bjernu got up and stalked off.
"Have I upset him?" Ameena asked.
"It is nothing you did. He does not like being singled out over his father having been an elf. He gets very defensive about it, and at times belligerent. Leave him alone, he will calm down,"Marnak said.
"I am sorry for telling him. I did not mean to upset him."
"It is not your fault," Marnak said.
"You keep apologising. Why are you doing that?" Olgyu asked Ameena.
The monk looked at the warrior, caught of guard. "I am sorry. What do you mean?"
"'I am sorry for telling him', 'I am sorry Larghain is such a rotten place'. You keep saying you are sorry for things you can and do not control. It is very irritating. Stop it. The world will not be very impressed by someone who keeps saying sorry for everything."
Ameena sat back, abashed. What did the world have to do with it? She knew she would never leave the monastery. She was too tired to think coherently about what Olgyu had just said. "Why should I care about the world? It does not about me." She felt a thread of anger in her belly. Her tail swept in short furious arcs.
"Bollocks. The world is bigger than this place and the villages nearby. Not everyone will care about that extra body part you have."Olgyu looked intently at Ameena, wondering how she would take it. The monk glared back, her black displaying a speck of red in each pupil. She did not speak, she was too angry. It roiled and boiled inside her, breaking through her defenses. Tendrils reached up into her mind. 'Do it. It is so easy. Give in. Kill her. She has insulted you. Punish her. Do it. It is easy. Listen to me.' Her breathing quickened. 'Give in to me!' It would be so easy. Lose control, let the darkness take over. Walk away from all that she had been taught. She pressed her hands against her temples. She did not want to hear that voice anymore. "No!"Ameena screamed. She scrambled to get away from the table, and ran out of the mess hall. Marnak and Olgyu looked at each other.
"Did you really have to do that?" Marnak finally asked Olgyu.
"I wanted to see if she had more than just smiles and sorrys. I guess we found out. I am not sorry for this. If she comes with us, I want to know what she is capable of. Did you learn anything more?"
"Not much more than what Sister Ameena has already told us. There are those big towns nearby and some villages. Apart from those, nothing important. If you mean about her, she cares a lot about the people here. Given how they apparently treat her, that is odd, to say the least. And she believes that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."
"I hope she is not the self-sacrificing type. I hate those."
Marnak smiled wanly. "I hope so too. We will talk tomorrow, when Bjernu has calmed down. We do need to think about where we are going from here."
"And the abbot's request?" Olgyu scratched her cheek.
""We will think about that too. Good night, Olgyu." Marnak got up.
"Good night, Marnak." Olgyu watched him leave the mess hall. She was not feeling all that tired herself, and did not know how to spend her evening. Deciding to wander around the monastery, she got up and left the hall too. The monks were glad to see her leave. They did not like screaming matches at dinner, and wondered why Father Morgenstern let them stay. And they mingled with Sister Ameena. She was generally accepted, but she was still considered kind of odd, especially by the newer arrivals at The Duchess. Her seemingly being exempt from those duties that took people outside the walls of the monastery also created some unfriendly feelings towards her. People grumbled andwent back to their food.
Now excuse while I go exorcise the plotbunny that just jumped me. Did I ever mention that I always seem to end up with more words as I type up my handwritten stuff?
"She happened." Bjernu pointed a finger at Olgyu. "Thankfully it is not broken, but it was close, according to your Sister Emmar. Oww!" He clutched the bag of ice to his nose. Marnak and Ameena looked at Olgyu.
The warrior shrugged. "He is being a baby. It is not broken and yet he keeps whining. He just does not like losing."
"You cheated! You hit me in the face! That is not what we agreed upon," Bjernu burst out, looking aggravated.
"First blood, dear." Olgyu looked smug.
"I am not your dear," Bjernu snapped. "And it was still not what we agreed upon."
"Silence, both of you!" Marnak ordered. "You have had all day to settle this. Now I want some quiet while I eat." Bjernu started sulking again. Olgyu started eating her meal. Ameena did so too.This was a change from the bantering that had gone on this morning. Finally the scout began to eat too, picking at his food and eating in small bites. He was breathing heavily through the ice bag on his nose. "What have you found out, Marnak?" he asked the cleric. "Anything interesting?"Marnak went on eating. "Well?"
"After dinner, Bjernu."
"You are snappish," Bjernu said.
"I want to eat after a long day of squinting at maps, and I find you and Olgyu fighting." Marnak rubbed his eyes with his left hand. "I want some peace right now."
"In here?" Bjenru looked around him, and gestured at the mess hall. It was noisier now than at breakfast.
"Yes, in here!" Marnak clanged down his fork. "Now let me eat!" The others looked surprised at his outburst, as did some of the monks sitting nearby. Ameena looked at her plate. Olgyu returned her attention to her meal when it was clear nothing else would happen. Bjernu sat stunned in his chair. Marnak had not often talked like this, let alone to him, his closest friend. The rest of the meal went on in silence. Ameena felt uneasy under all this. She wished Marnak had not asked to sit with them. After the meal was over, Marnak spoke again. "There are some bigger cities nearby. Not much else. There is Larghain to the north and Cramzia to the east. Sister Ameena has more about them. Sister Ameena, if you would tell us, please?"
Ameena looked up, surprised by the sudden change. "Yes? Oh, yes. Cramzia. It is a big city on a major trade route. They have a large market, more like a bazaar, where a lot of exotic products are sold. It is a week and a half's travel away from here." She hesitated. She did not want to talk about Larghain's bad reputation again, since she was not sure how the others would react.
"And Larghain?" Bjernu asked. He had noticed Ameena's uneasiness.
She swallowed. "It is not a good place to go to. It is to the northwest, at the border." She stopped again. She looked very miserable.Marnak said nothing.
"Why is not a good place to go to?" Olgyu asked. She had leaned back in her chair after dinner, folding her hands over her stomach. She looked questioningly at the monk, willing her to get on with it. She hated people who stalled when talking.
"Not everyone would be welcome there." Ameena glanced at Bjernu for a moment. He raised and eyebrow. "They do not like those of mixed parentage."
"Meaning?" Bjernu's voice got low.
"Half-elves, for one. There are living only elves and humans in the city and they believe in keeping the races pure." She looked at her plate pushing her cutlery around. "I am sorry."
"We should go there. I want to see that city for myself."
"Because they do not want me to." Bjernu got up and stalked off.
"Have I upset him?" Ameena asked.
"It is nothing you did. He does not like being singled out over his father having been an elf. He gets very defensive about it, and at times belligerent. Leave him alone, he will calm down,"Marnak said.
"I am sorry for telling him. I did not mean to upset him."
"It is not your fault," Marnak said.
"You keep apologising. Why are you doing that?" Olgyu asked Ameena.
The monk looked at the warrior, caught of guard. "I am sorry. What do you mean?"
"'I am sorry for telling him', 'I am sorry Larghain is such a rotten place'. You keep saying you are sorry for things you can and do not control. It is very irritating. Stop it. The world will not be very impressed by someone who keeps saying sorry for everything."
Ameena sat back, abashed. What did the world have to do with it? She knew she would never leave the monastery. She was too tired to think coherently about what Olgyu had just said. "Why should I care about the world? It does not about me." She felt a thread of anger in her belly. Her tail swept in short furious arcs.
"Bollocks. The world is bigger than this place and the villages nearby. Not everyone will care about that extra body part you have."Olgyu looked intently at Ameena, wondering how she would take it. The monk glared back, her black displaying a speck of red in each pupil. She did not speak, she was too angry. It roiled and boiled inside her, breaking through her defenses. Tendrils reached up into her mind. 'Do it. It is so easy. Give in. Kill her. She has insulted you. Punish her. Do it. It is easy. Listen to me.' Her breathing quickened. 'Give in to me!' It would be so easy. Lose control, let the darkness take over. Walk away from all that she had been taught. She pressed her hands against her temples. She did not want to hear that voice anymore. "No!"Ameena screamed. She scrambled to get away from the table, and ran out of the mess hall. Marnak and Olgyu looked at each other.
"Did you really have to do that?" Marnak finally asked Olgyu.
"I wanted to see if she had more than just smiles and sorrys. I guess we found out. I am not sorry for this. If she comes with us, I want to know what she is capable of. Did you learn anything more?"
"Not much more than what Sister Ameena has already told us. There are those big towns nearby and some villages. Apart from those, nothing important. If you mean about her, she cares a lot about the people here. Given how they apparently treat her, that is odd, to say the least. And she believes that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few."
"I hope she is not the self-sacrificing type. I hate those."
Marnak smiled wanly. "I hope so too. We will talk tomorrow, when Bjernu has calmed down. We do need to think about where we are going from here."
"And the abbot's request?" Olgyu scratched her cheek.
""We will think about that too. Good night, Olgyu." Marnak got up.
"Good night, Marnak." Olgyu watched him leave the mess hall. She was not feeling all that tired herself, and did not know how to spend her evening. Deciding to wander around the monastery, she got up and left the hall too. The monks were glad to see her leave. They did not like screaming matches at dinner, and wondered why Father Morgenstern let them stay. And they mingled with Sister Ameena. She was generally accepted, but she was still considered kind of odd, especially by the newer arrivals at The Duchess. Her seemingly being exempt from those duties that took people outside the walls of the monastery also created some unfriendly feelings towards her. People grumbled andwent back to their food.
Now excuse while I go exorcise the plotbunny that just jumped me. Did I ever mention that I always seem to end up with more words as I type up my handwritten stuff?
